Today we have day three of my vacation layouts.  This one is "floral" friendly and features the stamp set of the month last month and YES I cut every one of those flowers out!  I actually enjoy doing fussy cutting, it's something that seems therapeutic to me. I love the multitude of colors on this  layout, makes it seem bright and exciting and makes me smile.  Hope it does the same for you!

Today is day 2 of my vacation layout share.  This layout required quite a bit of stamping but I think the results were worth it.  Don't you just love those parrots!  The sentiment and the parrots were made using a sponging technique.  First you cover your stamp in the base ink.  Then you take a sponge dauber and dip it in whatever colored ink you wish to add to your stamp.  You then daub that ink onto the stamp in the areas you wish to cover.  You can use multiple inks if you like similar to how I did the word PARADISE.  For this stamp, I inked it all in glacier ink then used sponge daubers to add lagoon ink to the middle and sapphire ink to the bottom.  Turned out beautiful!  Sometimes people think that stamping is just for card making.  With these layouts, you'll see that Close to my Heart is able to show you that stamping is for scrapbook layouts as well.  It just adds that little something that makes your layouts extra special.

See you tomorrow for Day 3!

Over the next several days, I'll be sharing layouts I prepared to scrapbook our cruise vacation we took in March.  Most of the layout ideas come from Close to my Heart and the recent incentive trip that several Close to my Heart consultants went on.  Part of the fun on these incentive trips is being able to craft and this year they were able to put together a whole scrapbook album of layouts.  Close to my Heart decided to share those layouts with all of us and I was able to recreate the layouts to use for my cruise vacation.  Today's layout is one I did on my own using Kiwi Lane Templates and the Regatta Paper Pack.  It's a basic layout but will be perfect for all those beach photos I have ready to scrap.

I look forward to sharing these with you!
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Today I have the cards you'll be making using the Regatta Workshops Your Way kit.  To make the cards exactly as shown above, you'll need the My Anchor Stamp set along with the My Anchor Thin Cuts set or you can make the cards with any stamp set you have handy at home.  Out of all the workshops your way kits, these cards are my favorite because of the cute sentiments.  

I have also attached the video below on the assembly of these cards.  Enjoy!

Today I have the pocket page layouts you'll be making with the Regatta Workshops Your Way kit from Close to my Heart.  I used mine for a trip we took a few years ago to the beach and they worked perfectly for that.  Pocket scrapbooking is fun and easy and adds interest to a traditional scrapbooking album or they're perfect on their own in a pocket scrapbooking album.  I also included the video on making these pocket page layouts below.

Today I have the three traditional scrapbook layouts you will make when purchasing the Regatta Workshops Your Way Kit.  These wonderful workshops allow you to use one paper packet to make three scrapbook layouts, two pocket page layouts,  and between 8-12 cards (with or without a couple of additional supplies.)  Close to my Heart provides fabulous written instructions online as to how to assemble these workshops but they also provide videos that you can follow as well!  Below I've placed the video showing you first how to cut your ENTIRE workshop at one time to make assembly a breeze.  Then I have the assembly video for the traditional scrapbook layouts.

These show you how quick, easy, and fun it is to put together these kits.  If you have any questions, please contact me or to order, please visit my Close to my Heart Online Store.

Above I have pictured the featured paper pack of the month from Close to my Heart called Regatta.  It's a water/Nautical themed set that goes perfectly with those vacation photos at the beach or near the water.  Over the next several days, I'll be sharing project photos from the Regatta Workshops Your Way Kit as well as several other ideas.

As for an update on me, I'm finally back home after staying with my father for an extra week.  It was hard to come back with all the worry I have about him being alone but I knew it was time.  I plan on heading back out in a week or two to continue to wrap things up.  I thank you all so much for your well wishes and thoughts and I'm glad to be back on the blog!
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Whether you're a hobbyist, scrapbooker, or card maker, you're welcome at Close to my Heart!  Imagine receiving an instant discount on all of your crafting supplies?  What about the opportunity to earn extra money to purchase those craft supplies?  If you've ever thought about joining, take a look at this video for more information.  If you're ready to join, simply visit my Close to my Heart website.

My wonderful beautiful mother passed away suddenly on Monday, March 28.  Here's a picture of her on my favorite vacation ever to Harry Potter World in Orlando.  She was the rock of my family and my heart is just broken in two.  She's where my love of crafting started and I will be forever grateful for that.  Please pray for my family.

That being said, I am out of town and away from my craft room for at least the next week so I, unfortunately, will not have any craft projects to share with you.  I know you understand but I can't help but feel like I'm letting you down.  I've got lots of products from our new catalog starting May 1 on order and when I get home, I'll get back to my normal routine.

​Love you all and tell your family that you love them today.